English AbstractStudies have shown that disease management programmes have a positive effect on the treatment of chronically ill patients. In these programmes, health care by different professionals and in different institutions is better tuned and coordinated. Health care for chronically ill patients is fragmented into different care episodes, which increases the risk of sub-optimal care. To optimize the health care for the chronically ill, disease management programmes have been used to improve the coordination of care delivery.In this study we included scientific publications on the effect of disease management in chronically ill patients in general, and in specific chronic conditions: COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), congestive heart failure, depression and diabetes. We studied the effectiveness of disease management on severity of the disease, mortality, quality of life, care processes and patient satisfaction.Activities within the disease management programmes varied considerably among the included studies. Disease management programmes with several activities tend to be more effective compared to programmes with a focus on a single activity. Effective programmes often comprised the use of multidisciplinary teams, activities on prevention, and medication prescription by case managers. Although the variety among the disease management programmes was substantial, we conclude that disease management programmes in general can contribute to better care for the chronically ill.